Camp Club Girls Get a Clue!

by Renae Brumbaugh

  McKenzie: I didn’t see anything about it on the news this morning. Why not?

  Sydney and Elizabeth sat at Sydney’s desk. In front of them was an open box of chocolates, a gift from Agent Phillips. Two pieces of candy were missing from the box, and Sydney reached for another. On the shelf near Elizabeth sat a big glass vase filled with two dozen red roses. A white card with gold lettering hung from it, reading: With sincere gratitude— President Wilson Meade.

  Sydney: They’re keeping the assassination plot quiet. The visitors to the tattoo had no idea that anything was going on, because the FBI didn’t want them to panic. It was quicker to get the bomb away from the crowd than to get the crowd away from the bomb. When it was all over, President Meade made his speech as if nothing had happened, and then the tattoo ended with the fireworks.

  Alexis: So you’re not going to be on the news?

  Sydney: Not unless someone leaks it to the media. The FBI hopes it won’t happen. They don’t want other bad guys to get ideas.

  Elizabeth borrowed the keyboard from Sydney.

  Elizabeth: You can’t say a word to anyone about what we’re going to tell you. This is a Camp Club Girls secret. Let’s do a cyber pinkie-promise that we’ll take it to our graves.

  Bailey: I promise.

  Alexis: And me.

  McKenzie: I’m in.

  Kate: Me, too. Biscuit promises, too.

  Sydney and Elizabeth linked their pinkie fingers and promised to keep the secret forever.

  McKenzie: So who was The Professor?

  Kate: And what was up with the Secret Service guy, the boss?

  Elizabeth: One thing at a time. We have to start at the beginning, way back in 1967 in Vietnam. The boss—his real name is Peter Daniels—was a soldier then in the United States Army. He was the Dan in the note, “Lieutenant Dan, we’ve got legs,” not my uncle.

  Alexis: I’m glad, Elizabeth. None of us wanted your uncle to be one of the bad guys.

  Elizabeth chose a square piece of chocolate from the box before she continued.

  Elizabeth: Peter Daniels had a twin brother named Adam, and they fought together in the Vietnam War. They were both in a platoon called White Skull, and they were in the worst of the fighting.

  Sydney took over the keyboard while Elizabeth ate the chewy caramel.

  Sydney: One day, there was a terrible battle. The White Skull troopers were under attack, and they were outnumbered. So their leader, Sergeant Kuester, told them to retreat. He figured if he didn’t get his men out of there, they’d all get killed.

  McKenzie: How do you know all this?

  Sydney: Because Sergeant Kuester is here in D.C. at the Vietnam Veterans’ Reunion, the same one Beth’s uncle is at. The FBI found out that Sergeant Kuester had been Daniel’s platoon leader, and they figured he might have an idea why Daniels wanted to kill the president. It was his information that got Peter Daniels to confess.

  Bailey: So why did he want to kill the president?

  Sydney: President Meade was in the White Skull platoon, too, when he was a young soldier. When Sergeant Kuester told his men to retreat, Meade froze. Adam Daniels, the boss’s twin brother, tried to get Meade out of there, but Meade went crazy. He started fighting with Adam, like he was the enemy or something—

  McKenzie: It was Agent Orange, wasn’t it? I’ve thought from the beginning that whoever we were looking for was sick from that.

  Sydney: Sorry, McKenzie, but you were wrong about that. It had nothing to do with Agent Orange. Meade just froze in fear.

  Sydney helped herself to another piece of candy before going on with the story.

  Sydney: Sgt. Kuester realized that two guys were missing, so he went back to get them. When Peter Daniels found out that one of the missing guys was his brother, he went to help.

  Of course, when they got to them, they found Meade fighting with Adam Daniels. Adam was trying to drag Meade out of there while they were under attack. Kuester managed to get between them and wrestle Meade to the ground. But the enemy fired at them. The sergeant got shot in the leg and Adam Daniels fell to the ground—dead. Kuester managed to get out and Peter Daniels rescued Meade, but secretly he blamed Meade for the death of his twin brother.

  Sydney pushed the keyboard toward Elizabeth. “You tell the next part,” she said.

  Elizabeth: After he got out of the army, Peter Daniels became a police officer in Washington, D.C. He worked his way up to the rank of lieutenant.

  Kate: And that’s why they called him Lieutenant Dan in the note.

  Elizabeth: Right. Wilson Meade became a politician and was elected to the United States Senate. He and Peter Daniels were friendly, but Daniels was just like Jesus’ disciple Judas. He pretended to be Meade’s friend, but in the end, he betrayed him.

  When Meade got elected president, he wanted Peter Daniels as one of his Secret Service guys, because he trusted Daniels with his life. In fact, we found out today that it was Daniels who saved President Meade when he was almost shot at the National Air and Space Museum.

  Kate: So the boss saved Meade’s life twice. Once in Vietnam and again at the Spirit of St. Louis thing.

  Elizabeth: Meanwhile, Daniels was getting angrier that his brother was dead. He hated it that Meade was not only alive, but had also become the president of the United States. He just couldn’t get it out of his head that Meade was responsible for Adam’s death.

  McKenzie: So he decided to get even.

  Elizabeth wiped her chocolaty fingers on a piece of scrap paper.

  Bailey: What about The Professor?

  Alexis: And how do Moose and Rusty fit into all this?

  Sydney asked Elizabeth to go down to the kitchen to get some bottles of water. They needed something to wash down the chocolates. In the meantime, she went on with the story.

  Sydney: Daniels knew a scientist who had helped create the space shuttle. He was a troublemaker and hated the government, so he got kicked out of NASA. Daniels figured he’d be more than willing to help get rid of Meade, so he got Professor Hopkins to create a miniature smart bomb made of titanium. It was tiny enough to fit into that little metal box Moose and Rusty had but powerful enough to destroy all of Fort McHenry and most of the peninsula it’s built on.

  Alexis: So Hopkins was the mastermind professor, like Professor Moriarty in the Sherlock Holmes stories.

  Elizabeth returned with two bottles of water. Sydney opened hers and took a drink.

  Sydney: The Professor was the brains behind it all. Plus, he knew his way around the fort, so he decided where the best place was to plant the bomb. When they arrested him last night, he confessed to his part in the plot, but he blamed it all on Daniels.

  Bailey: And what about Moose and Rusty?

  Sydney gave the keyboard to Elizabeth.

  Elizabeth: Daniels and The Professor turned out to be cowards. They didn’t want to get killed if the bomb went off too soon, and they didn’t want to be connected with the assassination, so they got Moose and Rusty to do their dirty work.

  Moose and Rusty were both in trouble for not paying their taxes, and Daniels promised they wouldn’t go to prison if they helped him plant the bomb. As much as possible, Daniels tried to stay out of it. That’s why he left those messages at the Wall. He didn’t want to be seen with Rusty and Moose.

  Kate: So did Moose and Rusty confess?

  Elizabeth: They sure did. They told the FBI a lot of stuff. They said since Daniels was a Secret Service agent, he was allowed at Fort McHenry to bury the box with the bomb. He told the park ranger he was checking the place ahead of the president’s visit.

  McKenzie: Then he’s the one who made the treasure map.

  Elizabeth: He made the map. But Rusty and Moose messed up. They were supposed to plant the bomb that afternoon. The Professor wanted them to put it in a secret room in the fort’s hallway, the one that Moose hid in last night. But Daniels wanted it closer to where President Meade was supposed to give his speech. He told Moose and Rusty to hide it in t
he jail cell. It was all supposed to be done the day before the tattoo. But it got too late and Moose and Rusty took the bomb with them. They weren’t supposed to be anywhere near the fort on the night of the tattoo. Kate, if not for your tracking device, last night would have been a disaster.

  McKenzie: What did your uncle say, Elizabeth?

  Kate: And what about his friend Al? Was he following you?

  Elizabeth took a drink from her bottle of water.

  Elizabeth: That first day at the Wall, when I found the “Meade me in St. Louis” note, my uncle was suspicious. When I didn’t want to go to lunch, he figured something was going on. He was worried because I’d told him about our sleuthing at camp. So he asked his friend Al to keep an eye on me for a while. He was afraid I wouldn’t be safe in the city.

  Kate: Was I right that they put a GPS in your backpack?

  Elizabeth: No. There was no tracking device. But Al soon figured out that we were on to something. He was reading those notes at the Wall, too. None of them made sense to him and Uncle Dan, but they figured out, like we did, that something was going on with President Meade.

  Elizabeth helped herself to one more piece of candy.

  Elizabeth: Uncle Dan called Agent Phillips from the FBI. Phillips was Uncle Dan’s old army buddy. My uncle told Phillips about the notes at the Wall and also the two suspicious-looking guys who left them there.

  Kate: So that’s what I heard when I was listening outside their hotel room that day.

  Elizabeth: Right. Phillips wasn’t sure what was going on but decided that by following us they would keep us safe, and maybe find out what, if anything, we knew. I’d accidentally told my uncle we planned to go to Fort McHenry, so he, Al, and Agent Phillips followed us. But they lost us when we changed into costumes. They saw us go into the enlisted men’s barracks but didn’t see us come out. When I heard them outside the door to the wardrobe room, it sounded like they were looking for something. Turns out that they were looking for us!

  She pushed the keyboard over to Sydney’s side of the desk and asked her to finish the story.

  Sydney: By the time Uncle Dan found Elizabeth’s pendant, we had already left the fort. Agent Phillips figured we’d gone out the window. So Al went looking for us, and guess what he found instead—Rusty’s map. He must have dropped it on his way to the water taxi. And guess what it was written on—the back of a flyer announcing the Twilight Tattoo. So that’s how Uncle Dan and his friends found out that maybe something was going to happen at the tattoo. Then when they found out that we were there last night, they were doubly suspicious.

  Alexis: It’s a good thing they followed you last night. You both might have been killed.

  Sydney: I don’t think so. I think we’d have found a way to save the president. I don’t know how, but the Lord would have helped us.

  Alexis: He did help you! It all worked out according to His plan. By the way, what does your mom think about all of this?

  Sydney put the lid on the box of candy. She and Elizabeth had decided to save some for later.

  Sydney: Mom didn’t know anything about it until we got home last night. Aunt Dee brought us here in one of the ranger’s vans. Uncle Dan and Al came along and explained the whole thing to my mom. At first she was mad. But then she understood that we saved President Meade’s life. She cried and hugged us because we were safe. Then I couldn’t believe my ears. She said kids like us made the world a better place!

  McKenzie: All right! Let’s hear it for the Camp Club Girls!

  A soft knock sounded on Sydney’s bedroom door and her mom peeked inside. “I’m sorry to interrupt,” she said, “but I just invited Elizabeth’s uncle and his friend over for some barbeque. Dee’s starting the grill. Would you girls come help us get ready, please?”

  “Sure, Mom,” Sydney answered. “We’ll be down as soon as we’ve said good-bye to our friends.”

  Sydney’s mom smiled and closed the door.

  Elizabeth: We have to go. Uncle Dan and Al are coming over for a cookout.

  Bailey: Have a safe trip home.

  McKenzie: We’ll keep praying that your uncle Dan will walk again real soon.

  Elizabeth: Do you know what? I’m not angry about that anymore. This whole adventure taught me that Psalm 37:8 is true: “Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil.”

  Camp Club Girls

  McKenzie’s Montana Mystery

  Shari Barr

  CHAT ROOM TERMS:

  2 –too, to

  4 –for

  B –be

  BFF –best friends forever

  GF –girlfriend

  G2G –got to go

  Kewl –cool

  LOL –laugh out loud

  LTNC –long time no see

  RU –are you

  Sum –some

  Thx –thanks

  TTFN –ta ta for now

  TTYL –talk to you later

  U –you

  WTG –way to go

  Y –why

  A Surprise for McKenzie!

  Aaaaaahhhh!

  McKenzie screamed and clutched the reins with sweaty palms. She tugged firmly, trying to control her horse.

  Please, God, help me, she prayed as Sahara bolted down the arena.

  McKenzie’s heart pounded and her auburn hair whipped behind her.

  Something’s wrong! she thought.

  She leaned forward and pulled the reins with all her strength. The tightness she usually felt in the reins was missing. She had no control over her horse! Sahara raced straight toward the barrel in the middle of the arena.

  “McKenzie!” a voice screamed from the sidelines. “Hold on.”

  The reins slipped between her fingers. McKenzie started to slide from the saddle. She grasped the saddle horn, but Sahara’s galloping bounced her up and down until she could hold on no longer.

  McKenzie hit the ground with a thud as thundering hooves barely missed her. She laid with her face on the ground. Sahara raced by and finally slowed to a trot.

  “McKenzie! Are you okay?” A pair of cowboy boots appeared in front of her face.

  Rolling over, McKenzie pushed herself into a sitting position. She coughed from the dust Sahara had stirred up and looked into the eyes of Emma Wilson, her riding instructor. “I—I don’t know yet,” she stammered as she stretched her legs.

  She felt a strong hand support the back of her head. Turning, she saw Emma’s hired hand, Derek, holding up two fingers. “How many?” he asked.

  “Four,” McKenzie answered.

  Emma and Derek stared at her. No one said anything for a minute.

  “But two fingers are bent over,” she added.

  After a second, Derek’s face broke into a grin. He unbuckled her riding helmet and slipped it off her head.

  “She’s okay,” a familiar voice announced. The girl with a fringe of black bangs fluttering on her olive skin popped a red gummy worm into her mouth.

  “Bailey! What are you doing here?” McKenzie screeched as the girl approached her. “Hey, can I have one of those?”

  “Yep, she’s definitely okay,” Bailey said as she dangled a green and orange worm in front of McKenzie.

  McKenzie grabbed the worm and pulled her legs forward, trying to stand up. But Emma placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “Not so fast. Sit for a minute.”

  “What happened anyway?” McKenzie watched as her horse sauntered back across the arena and nuzzled her face. “I had no control over Sahara. I just couldn’t hold on.”

  Derek reached his hand out to the chocolate brown mare. “Here’s the problem,” he said as his fingers touched a dangling strap. “Her bridle is broken.”

  McKenzie tried again to stand. Emma and Derek each put a hand beneath her arms and helped her to her feet. Feeling slightly light-headed, she stepped forward and grabbed Bailey in a tight hug.

  “So, how did you get here?” McKenzie asked.

  “When you told me you were coming to Sunshine
Stables to train for the rodeo and help with Kids’ Camp, I convinced Mom and Dad to let me fly out with Uncle Troy on a business trip. He rented a car and drove me out from the airport. He didn’t have time to stick around, so he’s gone already.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” McKenzie asked.

  “Well, I signed up for the camp, since I’m not that good on horses. When Miss Wilson found out we were friends, she invited me to stay here, but she wanted to surprise you. Then after camp, she’s going to train both of us for the rodeo.” Bailey’s dark eyes flashed.

  “Oh, Emma, this is the best surprise ever!” McKenzie turned to her instructor.

  “Think of it as a thank-you for coming to Kids’ Camp on such short notice,” Emma said with a smile. “I didn’t expect so many kids to sign up. You’ll be a big help with the younger ones. But, let’s get you up to the house to sit for a minute. If you can walk, that is.”

  “I’m fine,” McKenzie assured Emma as she brushed dirt from her face with the sleeve of her T-shirt. “I’d better take care of Sahara first, though.”

  “I’ll do that,” Derek said as he grabbed Sahara’s halter. “I’ll take her to the stable and find her a new bridle. You go on to the house.”

  Emma and the girls walked to the large, white farmhouse. A sign reading SUNSHINE STABLES stood in the front yard. Several sheds and a huge red barn stood beyond the house. The riding arena was next to a matching red stable. A dozen or so horses grazed in the lush, green pasture.